Universal Gun Checks Proposal Gains Support In Washington Legislature

OLYMPIA, Wash. – The idea of requiring background checks for all gun sales in Washington appears to be gaining traction. Nearly half of the Washington state Senate Monday signed onto a universal background check proposal.

Co-signers to the legislation include Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom, a Democrat. Just last month he seemed cool to a similar universal background check proposal from the Washington House.

“Obviously, it’s a touchy subject and we want to make sure that we have a comprehensive solution not just sound bites that we can run off and say we solved the problem knowing full well that we didn’t.”

But now Tom and even a couple of members of his Republican-dominated majority coalition have joined most Senate Democrats to sponsor the universal background check measure.

Tom has also signed his name to another gun violence proposal. It would expand the state’s reckless endangerment law to including leaving a loaded gun where a child could get it.